Why should you have your car, truck, SUV or van professionally detailed?

A question that we, as detailers, hear quite frequently from prospective customers upon hearing how much it costs is:

But, the car wash place up the street only charges $20-25 to wash and vacuum my car, why should I pay you hundreds of dollars for ‘basically the same thing’?

— Prospective Customer

The image above is a composite image of two different close-up photos taken of the same car. The left side is the before picture. The right side is the after. In the left side, you can see a pattern of fine scratches that look similar to a spider web. These scratches are commonly referred to as "swirls" or "spider web scratches". Swirls are caused by improper washing techniques, the use of dirty or contaminated wash media, or the use of dirty or improper drying towels. Anything that creates friction against your paint can instill imperfections like the above swirl marks. These tiny imperfections can dramatically impact the finish of your car! A heavily swirled car can look faded and dull. Even if you practice good washing techniques and use high-quality towels, swirl marks and other micro-imperfections are inevitable if your car is not properly protected.

The image on the right shows the paint after a thorough paint correction. You can see the swirls have been eliminated. This is achieved through a lengthy machine polishing process. Improperly polishing your car can cause irreparable damage to your paint, resulting in the need for a whole new paint job. Proper polishing does not generate significant amounts of heat and results in the fine scratches and imperfections being gently wiped away.

Let me ask you this

How often do you see cars with dull, faded or flaking paint? Most people know that they need to properly maintain their car by changing the oil, rotating the tires, replacing the brakes when they wear out, and so on. Proper maintenance keeps the car running, and it helps to preserve the value of the car. However, many people do not realize that an important part of vehicle maintenance, as well as value preservation, is keeping the appearance of the car maintained and protected.

A lot of car owners feel that if their car looks shiny, it must be "perfect". However, a proper detail leaves your car looking the absolute best it possibly can, protects the paint, wheels, and exterior trim from UV damage, bird droppings, water spots, and can even potentially reverse years of neglect! Not only does this help the appearance of your car, it helps the resale value as well. You’ll also feel a sense of pride in your vehicle when it looks the best it possibly can.